Parasite
by ievanbarian
Summary: "It's time, Ritsu; I shall feed off you."
1. The First Dream

_Where… am I?_

_Why am I here?_

_I can't see._

_I can't hear._

_I can't feel._

_Is there anywhere I can go?_

…

…_what was that?_

_A person._

_No. I can tell it isn't. It's scent isn't normal._

_Slowly, slowly, I can make out footsteps._

…_did it get colder all of a sudden?_

_And this scent; this poisonous, yet intoxicating scent._

_Where have I encountered—_

"_Ritsu."_

"_!"_

_What- ?_

"_It's time."_

_This smoke…_

_No._

_It can't be!_

_Is that…?_

…**chomp.**

* * *

><p>"AAGH!"<p>

I wake with a start, panting and sweating.

There is a horrible shock coursing through me.

That dream again.

I say that, but it's been years since I've had that dream.

8 years to be exact.

That thing… why now? I'm 26, not a fucking teenager.

I'm way past the age it likes for…

There's a faint beeping sound from beside me, prompting me to bang hard on the annoying object to make it stop.

I'm still tired, having just woken up; maybe I should sleep a little longer.

A quick glance at the clock shows me that it's half nine.

…

**HALF NINE?**

Jumping out of my warm bed, I rush to change out of my pyjamas.

_Shit, _I think, grabbing my bag. _Takano's gonna murder me for showing up this late!_

I place a piece of bread into my mouth as I dash towards to the train station…

,,, but not after banging my head against the door.

* * *

><p>"Rejected."<p>

"What is it _this _time?!"

Takano swivels his chair back to his own desk. "The chapter itself seems interesting, but if you look at the manga as a whole, the change of course seems too sudden."

I blink. "Really?"

"YOU DIDN'T EVEN NOTICE THAT?! YOU'RE THE GODDAMN EDITOR RITSU! YOU SHOULD NOTICE THESE KINDS OF THINGS!"

"I-I'm sorry for that. It's just that-"

"No excuses, Onodera."

I sigh dejectedly as I walk back to my desk, ready to call Mutou to redo her chapter.

Again.

"**Yes! This is Mutou."**

"Ah, this is Onodera from Marukawa Publishing," I say. "Sorry to bother you so early."

"**Oh, no! I-It's fine, really. What's wrong?"**

"It's about the latest chapter."

As I chat with Mutou, there's a slight unease in me.

For some reason, that dream from earlier crosses my mind.

"_It's time."_

What does it mean by that? I can vaguely remember the events from back then, but this isn't part of it.

"**Onodera?"**

Mutou's voice brings me back to reality.

"Ah, yes! Thank you for understanding."

"**Yes."**

Hanging up the phone, Takano hits me with a rolled-up manuscript.

"Get to work," he says.

I grow irritated. "I JUST FINISHED TALKING TO MUTOU, MIND YOU!"

"Then do your work, dumbass."

Is it just me or did the atmosphere get a little gloomier? Perhaps due to the fact that I'm plotting Takano's murder in my mind…

* * *

><p><strong>Hi! It's been ages since I've written anything so I apologize if this seems pretty short. Hope you enjoy this story. Criticism would be appreciated. <strong>


	2. The Second Nightmare

_"Ritsu~"_

_Huh? Where am—?_

_Hang on, this scent—_

_Oh god! Again?_

_More footsteps. This can only lead to trouble._

_"I'm so glad you're here..."_

_I gulp, my whole body shaking with fear. This _isn't_ happening. It's just a dream. Just a bad, bad dream..._

_...right?_

_"Ah, Ritsu," I jump at its voice, hearing it breathe into my ear. _

_"Huh—?"_

_"Beautiful as always..."_

_Tensing, I try to find my voice._

_"Why... why are you—?"_

_A dark chuckle. Then a sharp pain from my ear. _

_"H-hey!" I call out, caught off guard from the bite. _

_Snow-white hands with blood red nails cover my mouth as I let out muffled screams of protest._

* * *

><p>"STOP!"<p>

Screaming, I get up from my bed.

It happened again: that damned dream.

I wonder offhandedly if that creature took pleasure from ruining my rare good night's sleep.

Suddenly, my eyes feel like they're burning and I panic for a moment, only to realise it's the sun.

Is it just me or is it way to bright in here?

Sighing, I get out of the bed to ready for work.

There's a knock on the door. I have this nagging suspicion that it's Takano, so I ignore it.

The knocking increases, and so does my irritation. Seriously, can he not do this first thing in the morning?

I had just finished putting on my jeans when Takano began abusing the doorbell, prompting me to lose my patience and stomp to the door.

"Listen, Takano," I say sternly, "do you have no consideration for the other residents of this building?"

Argh, he still has that 'I'm above you' look even now.

"You need to have breakfast," he states.

"Sorry, but I'm not hungry."

And of course, my stomach chooses this exact moment to start rumbling, causing me to blush.

Oh boy, this is gonna be so much _fun_!

* * *

><p>"So tell me then: how long are you gonna keep surviving on Energy Jell-O?"<p>

Oh, do I want to kill this man for dragging me into having breakfast with him on a work day (not that I'd want this on my days off)!

The food is good though, I'll admit. Just not to Takano.

"I-I was going to-"

"'Make your own meals but you couldn't find the time'?" Takano interrupts with an eyebrow raised. "How many times have you said that?"

Utterly lost for words, I pick up my mug and drink the coffee. I really don't feel like talking right now.

There's silence, save for the clanking of cutlery.

"Did you have a bad dream?" Takano suddenly asks, a hint of worry in his voice.

I tense, and for a moment I feel something bite me as snow-white fingers keep my mouth shut.

"Ritsu?"

I instantly snap back to reality at the sound of Takano's voice.

"Ah, it's nothing too serious," I say, laughing awkwardly. But we both know that's not true.

Luckily, he doesn't pry any more than that. Oh god, if I had to spill all this to him.

"Shall we go to work?" I ask, standing up.

Takano gives me a look. "Without washing the dishes? I think not."

* * *

><p><strong><em>In the middle of the subway, a young man sits.<em>**

**_He seems normal for the most part: black hair, tan skin, hazel eyes, a red hoodie that fades into purple, white jeans._**

**_But he isn't. The way his fingernails are painted red and how the skin on his hands seems snow-white are proof of that._**

**_He wears a twisted smile on his face, and licks his lips._**

**"_I think I've given you enough time to live," he murmurs to himself. "Ritsu Onodera."_**

* * *

><p><strong>Well, hi again! Thank you for favouriting, following and reviewing, my friends. It honestly brings a smile to my face. I hope to update this once a week on Sundays. Emphasis on <em>hope to.<em> Sometimes, it takes me weeks to update and I eventually lose interest. Hopefully not with this story! And before you ask (which I think you won't XD), the creatures in this story aren't vampires. They're- whoops. Can't tell you. Anyways, see you next week.**


	3. Something's Odd

I step onto the train, Takano not far behind me.

Some days, I honestly wonder why he feels the need to constantly follow me anywhere I go: be it my home (okay, I get the fact we live next to each other — but at the exact time?) or the restroom at work (it can't be hardly coincidence!). He's acting like a stalker!

There are no words exchanged between us. The only sounds I hear are those of the engines and some chatter from the other passengers.

"...those creatures are at it again, aren't they?"

I freeze, feeling the urge to listen in on their conversation. Which isn't something I would usually do, but the word 'creatures' piqued my interest.

"I know, hon. 15 more people went missing yesterday, so I heard."

"I heard those things smell weird — like iron, they said."

"Eh? I thought they smelled like honey?"

My eyes widened. I know what she was talking about. The general idea, anyway.

There's a knot in my stomach. So they're here? I let out a bitter laugh. So those dreams were probably some sort of warning. Better keep on guard.

"What's so funny?"

"Ack!"

I'm suddenly reminded of Takano's presence.

Laughing nervously, I slowly turn to him and reassure him that it's nothing.

Please tell me he fell for that.

"Liar."

...obviously not.

I sigh. "Can't I laugh for no reason?"

Takano raises an eyebrow at this, but doesn't say anything else.

More silence. Wonderful.

My minds wanders off to what those women said just there, memories from my teenage years appearing in flashes.

For a moment, I swore I felt those cold, white hands touch me; those nails scratching so hard it hurts; that sickly sweet voice trying to coax me; that horrifying sensation of—

"So how's Mutou doing with her chapter?" Takano asks.

I nearly jump out my skin at his voice. Jesus, can he _not_ do that?

Though...I'm kind of grateful. I really don't want to be thinking about stuff like that right before work.

"Well?" Takano asks with impatience.

"Sh-she's supposed to be inking her first page today."

"She better be."

Sharp as always. As expected from Takano.

Suddenly, I feel his hot breath near my ear.

"Ritsu," he asks, his tone laced with concern, "are you sure you're alright?"

Shit, I think I'm blushing. No Ritsu: get it together. Get. It. Together.

"I...I'm fine, honestly," I manage to say.

Takano sighed, making me shiver just the tiniest bit.

"You really need to work on that lying."

And now I want to kill him.

"But then again," he continues, "I like that honestly about you too. It's cute."

Please tell me the train is near our stop!

* * *

><p>"I think page 14 onwards needs a lot of work," Mino says, smiling as always. "I get the gist of what Fujita was thinking, but, ah, she hasn't quite executed the idea right."<p>

Another day at work and Takano decided to do one of those group checks with the manuscript of one of our lesser known mangas, _Love = Death_ by Miki Fujita.

"I agree!" Kisa pipes up. "The protagonist seems out of character with the decisions she's making. Not to mention the wacky proportions this chapter."

Listening eagerly to the conversation, I take a good look at the manuscript that was just handed to me.

"What about you, Onodera?" Takano booms.

"Uh, I agree with both Kisa and Mino," I say, not sure of what to add to the conversation.

"And?"

It sounds like he's expecting me to say something extra. Sorry, but I really can't think of anything other than what the others mentioned.

Wait. I got it.

"I think the last page needs more emotion," I say at last. "Not that there isn't any: it's just that I don't really feel the heartbreak too strongly. The character just lost the only person who treated her like a human, so shouldn't she a bit more devastated?"

Everyone is staring at me, making me feel uneasy. Was that a bit too much...?

"...Interesting."

Takano's looking at me with a look of— I'm actually not sure what, but it's definitely not his normal work face.

I don't have much time to ponder on it, as his face quickly switches to his usual demeanor and we quickly resume our normal tasks.

* * *

><p>How do I always get dragged into these things?<p>

It's only Monday and I've already been forced to have a meal with Takano.

Twice.

It wasn't that special; just grabbing a coffee from the vending machine but...

...can he not leave me alone for even a moment?

"You made a pretty interesting observation back there," Takano states bluntly.

I feel my face heat up. "Uh, thanks..."

"Did you get that from that novel I told you about back in high school?"

For Pete's sake, how red can my face go?!

Red enough to shut me up, apparently.

"So you did," Takano concludes. Of _course_ he jumps to his own conclusions without confirmation from me!

"I did _not_!"  
>"But really," he continues, "I liked your suggestion. I'll make sure to tell the newbie to mention it to her."<p>

I give him a confused look. "Newbie?"

"Yep," he says in a bored tone. "He should be here by now but he said his train was late. Like you when you began, he has no experience in manga."

"Oh really?"

Does that mean I'd get to be a senpai of sorts? It would be nice to not be at the bottom of the food chain...

Those thoughts are shoved out the window when I notice a strong scent.

And not that of the coffee.

No, it's scent of honey and iron.

Is someone calling me? I'm not sure. I'm too preoccupied with my thoughts.

And of course it was the one thing I didn't want to see that broke my train of thought.

"Excuse me!"

I look up to find the source of the scent; looking all innocent with neat black hair, a red-and-purple hoodie and a fake, cheap, disgusting smile.

It's him.

"Oh. Speak of the devil," Takano — I think? — mutters.

Wait, does that mean—?

"Do you know where the Emerald Department is?" he asks, his voice thick with fake innocence, and my fear is confirmed.

He bows.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Tomoya Tatsu; the new editor."

* * *

><p><strong>Hello everyone! Sorry for not updating last week. I barely had any ideas. Hope you liked this longer chapter. I actually managed to write over 1,000 words! :D Though some of it could be crap. :( Thanks for the lovely reviews, guys. I end up smiling like an idiot when I read them and I'm glad you like this story. Same goes for the followers and favouriters. See you later! ^.^v<strong>


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